GOLDEN

07.28.12

U.K. Keeps Top Credit Rating

Eric Piermont, AFP / Getty Images

More good news out of Olympics land—rating agency Standard and Poor's says that the United Kingdom will get to keep its coveted AAA rating, which means riskless debt and lower borrowing costs. The rating comes at a welcome time, days after new economic figures put Britain's growth-rate at its lowest in 50 years. S&P cited the likelihood of growth going into autumn, as well as the government's austerity policy, as reasons for the rating. George Osborne, Chancellor of the Exchequer, was thrilled. "On the day Britain welcomes the world to our country for the Olympic Games," he said, "this is a reminder that despite the economic problems we face, the world has confidence that we are dealing with them."